The Holiday Helper Forum is only visible to those who have 50+ posts and have been a member for 60+ days. Applicants for help must have a significant financial need, have 1000 posts as of October 1st and have 1 year of consistently active membership from October 2008 to October 2009. The first 100 completed forms will be chosen with the next 50 held aside for round two if we have enough families in "needs met." Fully completed forms, including first and last name will be given priority.
A copy of the FAQ is being provided below for further information about MDC's Holiday Helper Program, who is eligible, and how YOU can help!
If you have any further questions regarding eligibility or rules please PM abimommy, MDC's Assistant Administrator.
A copy of the FAQ is being provided below for further information about MDC's Holiday Helper Program, who is eligible, and how YOU can help!
If you have any further questions regarding eligibility or rules please PM abimommy, MDC's Assistant Administrator.
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Originally Posted by Maluhia
What is the 2009 Holiday Helper? As some of you may know, every year around the holidays we have had a little something here at MDC known as the Holiday Helper thread. It started six years ago with a simple post by Tracy and grew quickly into something quite magical - MDC moms helping MDC moms. We really appreciate the huge efforts of Tracy, Gemini, SpatulaGirl, JustVanessa, DreamsInDigital and many others to make things work in past years. Last year's stats: USA: 197 families, 288 helpers, 881 helps total Canada: 12 families, 31 helpers, 73 helps total This year, the need throughout the community here on MDC is greater than ever. Many more families are hurting financially. We feel so blessed to be surrounded by members who care so deeply for each other and are glad to provide a forum where you can help one another. This year we’ve got new and returning volunteers facilitating your Holiday Helper, they are: Tradd, medicmama, SleeplessMommy, flapjack, tuansprincess, KatieJD, Theoretica, Hollycrand, Weliveintheforest, HollysMom, Kalisis, Maluhia, and TiredX2 Much love and peace to everyone throughout the holiday season and into the new year. What are the Rules & Guidelines for the HH Forum? This forum will be moderated and only threads started by the facilitators will be approved. Please do not start new threads in this forum or they will be deleted without notice. We do ask that you remember the MDC User Agreement when posting here, and please note that we can not allow: * Auctions * Raffles * Sales or solicitations Please DO NOT spam forums to spread the word. There will be one moving thread that will float randomly from forum to forum. See if you can find it. Bump it up! Please DO use your signature to advertise that the Holiday Helper is up and running again this year. How do I put Holiday Helper in my signature? To get the word out about the Holiday Helper, you may 'advertise it' by directing members to the HH forum in your signature. (example: Please Help A Family in Need: Check out the Holiday Helper Forum) Please do not post or advertise the Holiday Helper in posts/threads on the boards. Those posts will be removed without notice. Please do not LINK to the HH Thread as links are no longer allowed in signatures without a business signature. Also – feel free to put the non-linking but very fun Holiday Helper smile  into your signature! The code for this year's HH smilie is : hh. You will need to remove the space between the colon and the hh to get the smilie to appear in your signature.Can HH help me with shipping costs? In the past we have had a "shipping fairy." This year, unfortunately, there are no funds available for the shipping fairy other than any funds donated by the community. We are counting on each other. If you are able to donate funds, we will gratefully accept them via Paypal to mdcholidayhelpers@gmail.com. To minimize shipping costs, we can also work with you to find the nearest Family in Need for what you have available. There are also several sizes of flat rate priority mail boxes, which allow you to know shipping costs in advance with no weighing – check ahead here and fill up a flat rate box! Please PM Maluhia if you are in need of shipping fairy help. How Can I Donate and What is a HHDDC? An HHDDC is the Holiday Helper version of a DDDDC: "Holiday Help Done Dirt Cheap." For $3.00 sent via Paypal, a customized tag/saying will be placed under your username that will hyperlink to the HH forum. With a small donation ($3.00), you will be helping MDC Families in Need. To get your own HHDDC or place one for a friend, please Paypal mdcholidayhelpers@gmail.com. 100% of the proceeds will go to help FINs! PLEASE DO NOT SEND HHDDCs DIRECTLY THROUGH the MDC SOFTWARE. Why Isn't My Thread Showing Up? As stated in the intro, only threads started by organizers will be approved. You can reply to an ongoing thread with your question or PM one of this year's facilitators. FAMILIES IN NEED Am I eligible to be a family in need (FIN)? * FIN must have "significant financial need" * FIN must have 1000 posts as of October 1st. 1 year of consistently active membership from October 1, 2008 to October 1, 2009. * FIN sign up will begin NOON EST MONDAY October 5th, and the first 100 completed forms will be chosen with the next 50 held aside for round two if we have enough families in "needs met." * Fully completed forms, including first and last name will be given priority. How can I sign up to be a Family In Need (FIN)? FIN sign up will begin at NOON EST Monday October 5th. You can sign up by PM'ing Abimommy,with the filled out 2009 HOLIDAY HELPER APPLICATION form (please copy and paste the form below) she will then forward it to the appropriate helper. Applications will be dealt with on a first come first-served basis. Please be sure to list both first and last name and physical mailing address. Completed forms will be given priority. What can I expect to receive as a FIN in 2009? The HH program will do its best to help out with gently used toys, clothing, coats, diapers etc - especially for younger children. If you need adult clothing or coats, please let us know - however much more children's clothing is available than adult clothing. Last year, we were able to provide gift cards to about half of FIN. This year, we do not expect to have many gift cards donated. We will be moving families to "needs met" when we have met the basic clothing, toy and diaper needs of children, to the best of our ability. Can you help me with my mortgage, tuition, heating bill, etc? Feel free to list any need your family has. However, our resources are even more limited this year than last. We have a sticky listing other sources of assistance. http://www.mothering.com/discussions....php?t=1139404 Who will see my FIN information? Your MDC user name will be available only to the facilitator team. Your list of needs may be posted in the HH forum for everyone to see, along with your FIN number and state or province of residence. Your name and address will be released to helpers who offer to send items to you. What about Thank Yous? As in the past, Thanking Helpers is not required but it is a much appreciated step that our MINs can take to warm the hearts of Helper Mamas. This year we will be emailing a “Thank You” login to the MINs and they will be able to post their own Thank You notes. HOLIDAY HELPERS How can I be a helper? First, make a list of what you have available. A gently used outgrown children's coat? Gently used toys or books? Are you willing to go shopping to pick out a special gift for a young child? Check the "needs list" for each category, or PM one of the facilitators in the list below. Any facilitator can take care of your entire list, for example if you have both toys and clothing please PM just one facilitator (we all work together so if you PM Tradd with Toys and Kids Clothing we promise the message will work – you don’t have to PM both she and KatieJD!) 2009 Facilitators: * Toys and books Tradd and medicmama * Diapers/new baby supplies - SleeplessMommy and Hollycrand *Coats/Hats/Gloves/Boots - flapjack and tuansprincess * Kids clothing - KatieJD and Theoretica * Adult needs Hollycrand * Canada Weliveintheforest and HollysMom * MIN contacts - Kalisis (contact to clarify needs or make sure promised items have arrived) * GUI coordinator - Maluhia and TiredX2(if something is offered and there is not an obvious MIN to send it to, the GUI coordinator can post it on the "GUI available" list What does gently used mean? In general, clothing should be freshly washed and free from stains and holes. Toys should be complete and/or usable. Please read this post to better understand what we mean when we ask for Gently Used Items. Where is the off-MDC Database? This year, we are trying something different. The Holiday Helper Forum has threads with needs lists for Diapers, Coats, Toys, Clothing, etc. We will also feature a few families in need at a time, each with their own thread. Who do we PM about donating extra PayPal? Maybe you have a few dollars in your PayPal account. Maybe it is just a bit of spare change. If twenty people send us their spare PayPal change or a few dollars that is a gift certificate for a Mom-In-Need! You don't even need to PM anyone! Just send your PayPal donations to: mdcholidayhelpers@gmail.com All money received to this account will go to helping MDC MIN. If you have any further questions regarding eligibility or rules please PM abimommy. When PMing our Facilitators please give us 24 hours to get back to you - we hope to be very busy spreading the joy!  |
